Project XL185/CG250 swap

[XLsior]

Originally Posted by Bruces

I am proud of you for finishing that bike .Get out and ride it .
What’s your next project ?

I still have 2 more hurdles.

my trip to the transport department/DMV to pay for registration and get my plate. before hitting the road which requires $

Also I am still on my beginner/learner license So I will need to enroll and get my provisional license more $. I wanted to finish my bike first and use it for the course.

So not quite there yet.

But I can keep practicing riding skill in my yard for now...



as far as projects..I have XL350 fuel tank to make fit and the luggage rack to modify for side luggage/panniers.


I still have that Racing mower possibility.



a CT110 postie maybe 1 day if I can find a candidate at a reasonable price.


Though if I am ever at a stage where I need more grunt it would probably be a DR650. however my funds a shoestring and I don't think I could ever sell the XL as I am basically a 1 bike registered in the garage.


Maybe a an old 2 stroke bush bash project...



I am not lacking in things to do though, the house and garden take up enough time already.

[XLsior]

Making the Xl350 tank fit.

While jostling around with the tank placement it turns out the original shoulder mounts probably would have been fine, (however I did use the supports cut from the dead 81 XL185 tank for a tighter fit).

However that was not the case prior to massaging the tank with relief dents to clear the upper shock clamp bolt heads at full steering lock.

So it was up to the mounting point at the other end where the seat is also mounted.

I made a mount plate out of some scrap angle steel drilled the 20mm hole to fit the XL350 rubber pad grommet and factored in the required support area for the seat to mount to.

Making clearances front back up and down made for some close shaves only millimeters "a bees dick" in some places...any adjustment in 1 area implicated clearances in 2 or more other locations.

I made a commitment and zapped the seat mount bracket to the tank...

After it was done and fully mounted it appears I will have to shave the head fins again for petcock clearances.

But the tank on the bike looks reasonably proportioned and they way it sits should not impact the fuels ability to drain as expected.

the seat mounts up without issue.

considering it will achieve almost 2x fuel capacity I think it will be worth it.

[XLsior]

Locked in tank.

think there will enough room in the tank arch for a spare inner tube...maybe 2.

[JerryHawk250]

The bike is really coming along nicely. Looks great!

[XLsior]

The inside of the tank was not a crusty horror show...

however the was some surface rust and I could hear some dry bits shaking about. Would probably be fine to run as is but....

I already purchased some tank sealer a while back so I might as well use it.

start prep:

Ive had good rust treatment results with household vinegar so plugged up the tank with and partially filled...most of the issue is on the bottom half of the tank.

slosh it about every 1 hour or so will check in 12hrs.

then ill rinse it out with some water and isopropyl alcohol dry it out with a bit of help from the heat gun and full sun.

then tumble coat the sealer...

That's the plan anyway.

[XLsior]

So about 24hrs/next morning...

I was ready to see how the vinegar rust dissolve treatment went.

However I went to the shops an purchased some baking soda/bicarb as a an acid neutralizer... prior to dumping out the vinegar...

So I filled a jug with fresh water added about a tablespoon of bicarb and a drop or 2 of dish soap to cut any residual oils too.

then I also got the pressure washer primed to go...

Tipped out the rusty vinegar slush into the white bucket...

dumped the jug of water/bicarb/dish soap and did a shake shake shake...

dumped that out....

fired up the pressure washer and blasted internally. dumped that out till clear...

then added a splish of isopropyl alcohol and swished it about as a final rinse purge while the inside was still wet...if you do the next step with to much alcohol and a dry tank there is a higher risk of a KABOOM...so you've been warned.

You can skip the isopropyl treatment if you are just cleaning a tank, I only opted to do so for the tank sealer to have the best surface to stick too. Once the tank is dry you could just coat the inside with 2 stroke oil as a rust preventative prior to filling up with fuel.

looked squeaky inside so got the heat gun set to low and warm soaked the tank 2x before adding the sealer....

If you do not do this process in good quick time the bare metal will flash rust in a matter of minutes. ...

[XLsior]

So I was having a dead electrical issue...
I purchased a new rec/reg after deducting that the old 1 died from heat stroke near the exhaust pipe....

plugged in the new rectifier and nothing...wiggled the main fuse and the system lit up.

Ehhh

So I fixed all that down and fired the bike up to get some fresh fuel through the carb...

then the throttle started to play up...had a looksee and found the cable end lug had snapped off...

Oh great and none of the emergency cable end repair kit bits fit either.

Looking at a plausible cause I believe the shear edge on the throttle is the main culprit...wouldn't be an issue with a plastic throttle but the the metal on metal appears to have made a fatigue focus point.

(If you have a metal throttle grip it might be worth inspecting to see if it has a hard cutting edge)

I found a jigsaw blade to take the edge off...

And am going to see if JB and a section of a female bullet electrical connector will work for a new cable lug...

But looks like im down another throttle cable to add to the collection...

[XLsior]

Paid "the Man"

The bike got its Registration Plate.

So I could cut down and modify the placeholder which was just for inspection purposes.

Cleaned the fitment and moved the brake light up.

a tail tidy...

Just waiting for the replacement throttle cable now and it's by all accounts now

Roadworthy.

[XLsior]

Decided to go for the 85ml listed option.

I have my reasons for using a cooler.

I went with the 85 mainly due to the fact it comes with a mesh grill.

Came with a free fingerprint on the black paint and some rust on a bolt head...other than build quality seems ok. the crush washers seem better than some cheap copper imitation.
Also the clamp bracket holes don't line up...But I will not be using it.

Going to flush out the cooler with hot water for an possible crunchy bits.

Was the best price at the time for Australian delivery.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32969748979.html?spm

[XLsior]

I was pondering how to fix the oil cooler to the bike.

Then I remembered the old crab claw style clamps that originally came with the bark busters but I didn't like and swapped out for a better style clamp...

But It looks like adapting them to use on the oil cooler mounts should work well enough.

[XLsior]

Well I took the bike for its first rip down a public back road.

Had a little old phone with GPS speed app running to cross reference the sensor speed on the dash....well the dash was very generous by about double.

So I spent a good while in the dash menu screen trying to dial in the speedo...doing power runs.

I worked my way up to about 80kph/50mph (at about 6500rpm in 5th) which is the top designated legal speed limit around my area with slower sections in between.

Don't have the brass tackle to go faster for now. Still need to work up confidence in myself and the bike.

Got back home in 1 piece, bike definitely got up to temp...might need to check the valve lash again.

All in All a momentous occasion.

[XLsior]

contacted a wreck seller and struck a deal on a rear chain guard.

This piece was missing from both my project 92 and the pooched81.

I would be inclined to imagine that piece was typically the first area of damage or 'weight reduction' element that was thrown out.

My bike passed inspection without it, Whether it is providing any safety over its possible hazard is debatable.

I'm not really sure why I went to the trouble of replacing it...

But here we are spending $ on rusty bits again.

So In project fashion i ended up cutting out worn excess and forming up a cleaner fitment in line with the chain position.

[XLsior]

Low guard done with enough clearance around the chain on a 45 rear sprocket.

[XLsior]

So there's this dirt road I can see from my home way down the hill on the other side of the valley.

my first 'adventure' was to go down that road when the bike was road registered.

Well that day was today.

digi dash started playing up....probable wiring gremlin from road bumps and vibration.

managed to pin 90kph WOT on the way back in 5th....think that 17t front sprocket is in order. Was climbing steep inclines reasonably well in 4th with the 16/45 ratio...but i need more top speed for 100kph main roads.

other than that mission accomplished.

The top photo shows the location of the road way passed the tall Eucalyptus tree...

[XLsior]

Oil cooler is now firmly attached.

I had to massage the skid plate for clearance and slightly bend the lower solid tube section for a tighter line route but I made it fit...

The lines themselves basically decided how they would end up as there is little swivel ability in the banjo end sections.

I did have it with the ends in the cooler swapped but the lines were a bit to floppy and I didn't want cable ties everywhere...

this way the lines are holding each other firm in position...I can't see any kinks...

I tired my best to prefill to avoid any air locks...i"m not sure if I achieved this...ran the bike stationary with the cooler on the ground in an attempt to circulate the system...

Followed all the guides and suggestions...But I'm still not sure how long it takes to 'feel the heat' before I start to worry about it not working.